Friday, February 26, 2010

Valentine's Day

I'm really late on this post as you can probably tell from the title!

Back in January, my mom and I went to a culinary school at a spa in Utah for about a week. We learned how to do so many healthy dishes and it was such a good time! For Valentine's Day I made two of these dishes for my boyfriend and I. We stayed in and ate in front of the TV. It wasn't probably romantic enough for the rest of the world but we had a great time :)

These first two recipes are courtesy of Red Mountain Spa in Ivins, UT. The third photo is my attempt at the chocolate crepes from Gina over at Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes. My boyfriend absolutely loved these.. so much that he tried making a few more himself. The thing is, he has no patience and has extremely big clumsy hands. So Ryan and crepes didn't really hit it off in the kitchen. But he definitely enjoyed eating them!

Anyway I'll get to it.

Caesar Salad with Cheese Crisps
Hearts of romaine
Parmesan cheese (block)
3/4 oz anchovy fillets
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
2 segments garlic
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 oz red wine vinegar
1/2 oz lemon juice
4 oz soft tofu
1/4 tsp tabasco sauce
5 oz olive oil
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese (for crisps)
Croutons (optional)
Cut romaine into bite-sized pieces. In a blender or food processor, combine all ingredients from anchovy fillets through tabasco sauce. Drizzle in the 5 oz olive oil.
On a silpat, create small piles of freshly shredded cheese. Bake at 350 for a few minutes (maybe 5), keeping an eye on the piles as they melt. When they appear to have melted, take the silpat out and let the crisps set till cool enough to touch.
To assemble the salad, toss the romaine with croutons and as much dressing as desired. Garnish each salad with a cheese crisp.
Salmon with Tofu Dill Sauce
Salmon fillets (4 oz per serving)
Sauce:
1 cup soft tofu
2 oz lemon juice
2 tsp dried dill weed
4 garlic segments
1 oz white wine
pinch salt
Combine sauce ingredients in blender or food processor. Put in refrigerator to keep cool while cooking salmon.
Salmon can be cooked on a grill or a grill pan (if you are in New England!)
And here's a picture of one of our crepes..

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Grandma's Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

My last living grandma passed away this month. :(

It had been coming for a long time, but it doesn't make it too much easier to see her go. She was the sweetest grandma you could have ever asked for. Not even saying this because she was my own grandma, but she really was just one of those special little ladies that warms your heart everytime you see her. Sadly I didn't get to see her that much because Michigan is not very close to New Hampshire.

I dug through her recipe collection and found an old oatmeal carton top, the kind that had the oatmeal raisin cookie recipe right on it. My mom told me a story about how someone asked my grandma for her oatmeal cookie recipe (I don't remember who it was.. could have been her?) and my grandma responded something like.. "Oh sure. Go out to the store and pick up some oats. Follow the recipe that comes on the carton." Totally serious. I love that.

So these are NOT healthy.. which is not usually what I like to make. (You might not be able to tell from what I blog about, but I am kind of a health nut. I'm giving veganism some serious thought as well). But these cookies are so delicious, and they remind me of my grandma, so here you go. :)



"Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies" (Quaker)

2 sticks butter, softened (the updated version on the Quaker website says 1 stick plus 6 T, which shows how old this carton top must be!!)
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I actually used about three quarters whole wheat, and it was great)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt (optional.. I opted out)
3 cups Quaker old-fashioned oats
1 cup raisins (I soaked these in warm water to plump them up a bit first)

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown.
Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.


I also want to show off two of my new toys from my Christmas/birthday season!!



(I used both of these toys for the first time with this recipe!)
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